Egypt witnesses workers unrest

Cairo (Agencies): Egyptian workers ignored calls by the military and took to the streets again to demand higher wages and better working conditions as the country's new leadership faced the difficult task of bringing back order while keeping people on its side.

The mass uprising in Egypt that overthrew the Hosni Mubarak government has now made way for widespread labour unrest, with workers unions striking work.

Emboldened by the success of the mass protests, and angry over rising prices and economic hardship, workers in Egypt's largest factory again called off work, days after ending their strike, Al Arabiya reported.

The development came despite the military leadership issuing a warning that further unrest in the country would spell disaster for the economy.

In a statement, the Supreme Military Council had asked the workers to get back to work and abandon the strikes and protests.

The military now faces a difficult balancing act between heeding to the peoples views and restoring stability.

The Council also formed an eight-member panel on Tuesday to carry out the task of rewriting the constitution within 10 days, before it is put to referendum within two months.

The panel is headed by a former judge and includes a former lawmaker of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The military has promised to oversee a peaceful transition to democracy, scheduling elections for September, but its course of political reform is being tested by the continued protests and sit-ins by workers in the country.

The military assumed power last week when Mubarak stepped down in the face of incessant mass protests after ruling the country for 30 years.

The step by the military to set up a panel came two days after a parliament packed with Mubarak loyalists was dissolved and the constitution suspended in line with the demands of the protesters.

The constitution, that now stands suspended, had provisions that helped Mubarak and his allies in power, and a major demand of the protesters was the scrapping of such guarantees and putting term limits for presidential tenure.

The Egyptian military also sacked two top security officials on Tuesday for their role in decisions to open fire on anti-Mubarak protesters during the 18-day uprising.

Political unrest, meanwhile mounted in other Arab nations, with Egypt-inspired rallies witnessed in Bahrain, Libya and Iran.